Special hospitality concept: GOUD in Rotterdam
I’m often asked: “What are truly great hospitality concepts?” Here’s my answer! Every week, I take you to the most special restaurants, bars and hotels at home and abroad. This time: the acclaimed GOUD restaurant, owned by Herman den Blijker and Nick de Kousemaeker, in Rotterdam.
Anyone entering GOUD restaurant surrenders to a world of ostentation, opulence and luxury. The ultimate in bling bling. Or, in the words of co-owner Herman den Blijker: ‘A Christmas bauble’, ‘a flashy little shop’ and a ‘sexy, big joint’.
Typically Rotterdam
The restaurant can be found where FG Bistro used to be. It has a chic look, with plenty of gold, of course, as well as brass and green velvet. What does GOUD stand for? When Rotterdammers think something is great, they call it gold. It’s a typically Rotterdam expression that Den Blijker was happy to name his restaurant after.
360-degree bar
Eye-catchers include the open kitchen and the 360-degree bar, which guests can walk all the way around. Another great detail: the bar top is made from recycled champagne bottles, and the chef’s table from recycled Heineken bottles.
The De Kousemaeker brothers
Den Blijker runs the restaurant together with Nick de Kousemaeker, who owns a 50% stake and will take over the restaurant with his younger brother Ian in a few years. Den Blijker in Entree Magazine: “It’s time for the brothers to take center stage more and for me to do so less. Yes, sometimes I have to bite my tongue, but so do they, and ultimately this interaction is a good thing. I know they can do it, and it has to become their little shop.”
Back to basics
At nineteen, Den Blijker attended the famous Cordon Bleu cooking school in Paris. “In Paris, I ate a dish from my great inspirations Alain Passard and Guy Savoy every time I visited; they let the product be the product. Everyone is talking about back to basics, provenance and seasonal produce now, but I learned that back then. So don’t expect a pinball machine of all kinds of gels, flavors, twigs and colors on the plate from me. I’m not saying it has to be heavy and crude; it has to be good.” And that is precisely the foundation of GOUD, where Den Blijker still stands behind the stove himself every evening, together with the brothers.
GOUD, Lloydstraat 204, Rotterdam
Images: Pim Ras + Restaurant GOUD
Iris Kranenburg is editor-in-chief of hospitality trade magazine Entree Magazine and chair of the jury for the annual Entree Awards (industry awards for the best new bars, restaurants and hotels in the Netherlands).
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